Dead Pet Society

Tuesday, February 23, 2010

For the past 5 weeks I worked on a little play called Dark Matter. It was the first play I had been in since the 8th grade due to various things (work, parents, etc). I auditioned for the University Theatre and after the dismal audition, I decided to audition for Dark Matter. My wonderful friend Tosin Morohunfola wrote and directed it. I auditioned and went to callbacks. Callbacks was were all the hilarity started, and it hasn't ended. :)

Of course, creating a play is collaboration between actors, directors, crew, etc. None of what I accomplished in Dark Matter would have been possible without the love and careful attention and collaboration between Tosin and his actors. Every rehearsal was a wonderful mix of fun and serious business which is the best environment for creation, especially with a play like Dark Matter. Tosin guided us in the direction he wanted but never told us how to get there. Sometimes his vague directions like "you know what to do!" were more frustrating than anything, but in the end it really put the characters in the actors' hands and let them connect with the character and really give the best performances we could. Thank you Tosin for being a wonderful director. We all fell in love with your dream.

In my humble opinion, I don't think the show could have been cast better. Regardless of everyone's experience, we all took the direction and the time to cultivate our talent and train ourselves to create vibrant, life-like characters. Everyone brought their own ideas to the table and we all helped each other to mold our characters. I don't think there's enough I can say about each and every one of you. Really. I couldn't have found a better, friendly, more enthusiastic and talented group of people to work with and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I'm so happy we all became friends and I sincerely hope we can stay friends. Thank you to everyone for making Dark Matter an unforgettable experience. Thank you Rebecca for all of your hard work to make this show come together. We truly would not have gotten anywhere without you. Your input was invaluable and your deceptively quiet disposition made for some hilarious and surprising moments. Thank you again for being the best stage manager anyone could ask forThank you Sean, Taylor and Matt. The show would not have come together without you. I was told many times that the PSAs were both terrifying yet and pleasantly surprising addition to the show and provided a great foundation to the show. The Man was undoubtedly everyone's favorite character and you kicked that shit hardcore. It was wonderful. Thank you Anna for your dry humor and sarcastic enthusiasm, and your work ethic that motivated me to get my lines memorized! Thank you Clayton for your cheerful disposition and inspiring determination. Thank you Danielle for bringing a smile to my face every rehearsal with your own brand of humor and desire to be the best you could be. Thank you Ajani for being the rock of the cast and bringing some good sense to all of the crazy around you. And of course, thank you Ed. Without you to act beside, Tessa would not be the same. Working with you on Miles and Tessa, in my opinion, has made me a better actor. And thank you of course for your ridiculous sense of humor. Thank you to everybody again. There are no words, only feelings :)

Monday, February 1, 2010

So I made this blog a little bit ago because I wanted to record part of my life, and have deep, thought-provoking things to say. So far it's been a joke about a dead fish. My thoughts have been provoked, but only because it was my fish. It's not that I don't know what to write, it's that I don't know how to write. Someone suggested a creative writing course. Do they have a section on blogging?

I'll let you know that I don't do well with transitions. In my head things happen and they come out only as fast as my fingers can type. Transitions are often lost because they take up too much time. If everything seems non-sequitur, then you're on the right track reading this. Often my connections are long and convoluted but take only a split second for me to formulate and would take infinitely longer to type out. Incidentally, when writing "infinitely", I was reminded that I finally learned, after many instances of trial and error, to spell the word definitely. They key is to not think but just put your fingers on the keys and go. Get it into your head, then get out of it.

Is it a coincidence that many things nowadays I find I can apply to improv? My life over the past few months has gone from a casual patron and practicer of the art to a full blown participant and student. Unfortunately my life as a college student doesn't allow for all the improv I want. If I had the time and the money, I'd be in Kansas City every night for every show. The turning point for me was when I recieved a phone call from Stitch Tactics KC, requesting my participation in that weekend's show, which immediately became a full-blown active membership. That jumpstarted me to start being a lot more serious about my leadership position in Stitch Tactics Lawrence. I didn't nominate myself for the position, but since I was at every rehearsal my freshman year, the previous leaders asked me to be a leader myself. It took a while and constant pushing from my other officers, but eventually I became confident in what I was doing, both on stage and off as a leader. Stitch Tactics and improv in general I believe are responsible for making me into the person I am today. Through practising and performing and the guidance of my troupe members, I've become a confident, successful person both in and beyond improv. That was something I never thought would be possible when I came to college.

Through that dscipline, I need to find a comfortable and successful way in which I can organize this blog!

Monday, January 18, 2010

So the name of my blog is also the name I want to use for a group of people. Like an improv troupe. But I feel like it would upset audience members. They'd sit in the audience and laugh, but behind their happy exterior, they'd be thinking "Oooh, my poor poor baby Smokey! Why did they have to reopen that 12-year-old wound?" I don't want people to be thinking about their beloved dead cat, or the Betta fish they buried in their front yard in the center of a triangle of trees after the extreme cold inside the house killed to poor, already slighty sick fish while we're trying to make them laugh. They will laugh less. And that is the opposite of the desired effect.